Chongqing Bank 2025 Annual Report: The "Quality" and "Balance" After Surpassing One Trillion

Ask AI · Is the rapid increase in corporate loans at Chongqing Bank a sign of strategic imbalance or precise focus?

On March 24th, Chongqing Bank disclosed its annual report, becoming the focus of market attention. This “14th Five-Year Plan” closing report card is indeed impressive: asset size broke through the trillion-yuan mark for the first time, revenue and net profit both grew by over 10%, and net interest margin rebounded by 4 basis points against the industry’s general downward trend.

However, as the spotlight often casts shadows, some comments quickly caught the “underlying currents” behind the glamorous data: imbalance between corporate and retail, decline in intermediary business income, pressure on capital adequacy ratio. There are even voices pointing directly to concerns that Chongqing Bank is falling into a “rough expansion” trap.

These doubts seem to hit the core, but if we strip away emotional rhetoric and view this financial report from the fundamental perspective of a city commercial bank serving the local economy, combined with the special macroeconomic environment in 2025, we might find: the so-called “imbalance” is precisely an inevitable choice and strategic resolve of Chongqing Bank as a regional financial mainstay at this stage. At the crossroads of scale and structure, Chongqing Bank has chosen the most fitting path for its identity as a “local main force.”

The surge in corporate loans — imbalance or strategic focus?

A major market concern about Chongqing Bank’s 2025 financial report is its significant change in credit structure: corporate loan balances increased by 30.95% year-on-year, accounting for 77.46% of total loans; in contrast, retail loans slightly decreased by 0.94%. From a ratio perspective, this might seem like an “imbalance.” However, assessing the asset allocation of a regional bank cannot detach from its core positioning and the economic stage it operates on.

For Chongqing Bank, as a legal entity rooted in Chongqing, its core function is to precisely align with regional development strategies, channel financial “fresh water” into the most needed areas of the real economy. In 2025, the bank focused on building a modern industrial system, with credit deployment showing a clear “precision drip irrigation” feature: manufacturing and medium-to-long-term loans increased by over 20% and 30% respectively, technology loans surged by 60%, and green and inclusive finance loans also achieved double-digit growth. These data reflect that the high growth in corporate loans is not just simple scale expansion, but a targeted focus on advanced manufacturing, technological innovation, green development, and other high-quality sectors representing future economic directions.

This strategic focus resonates with the implementation of major national strategies in Chongqing. The annual report shows that through a “specialized team” mechanism, the bank deeply serves the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle, the Western Land-Sea New Corridor, with related financing balances increasing by 27% and 86% respectively, supporting nearly 150 major projects. This has not only resulted in deposit and loan growth that has kept Chongqing’s market share first among local peers for two consecutive years but also integrated its financial services deeply into the regional development backbone. Its effectiveness has been recognized locally, earning the title of “Outstanding Contributor to Chongqing’s High-Quality Development” by the municipal government.

Meanwhile, its financial market business capabilities are also strengthening, aiding real enterprises’ financing. In 2025, the bank’s share, proportion, and number of debt financing instruments underwritten for non-financial enterprises all ranked first in Chongqing, and for the first time led among regional legal financial institutions in the western region. This demonstrates the synergy of its “commercial + investment banking” service model: deepening corporate business into industries, then expanding corporate financing channels through investment banking tools, forming a closed loop serving the real economy.

Therefore, simply defining the high growth of Chongqing Bank’s corporate loans as “lame” might overlook the fundamental logic of regional banks’ operations. During a cycle of industry-wide challenges in retail, relying on deep understanding of regional economy and concentrating resources on the growing corporate sector—especially industries and projects aligned with national strategies—should be viewed as a “strategic focus” and “proactive action” based on its resource endowments and regional mission. This may well be the distinctive answer sheet that a key western city commercial bank delivers amid complex economic conditions.

The high increase in interest income — the foundation of city commercial banks

Another focus is the 24.24% decline in non-interest income, with agency wealth management business income nearly halved, leading to over-reliance on interest income.

Certainly, from a light-asset transformation perspective, a low proportion of non-interest income is a drawback. But it’s crucial to clarify a logic: for local city commercial banks, in the current low-interest-rate market cycle, “wealth management transformation” is not an overnight achievement.

Chongqing Bank’s net profit growth in 2025 is primarily driven by the stabilization and rebound of net interest margin. The net interest margin increased by 4 basis points to 1.39% year-on-year, a “miracle” in 2025 when industry-wide interest margins are under pressure. Behind this achievement is meticulous management of liabilities: the cost rate of interest-bearing liabilities fell sharply by 40 basis points to 2.18%.

This means Chongqing Bank still maintains strong competitiveness and bargaining power in core deposit and loan businesses. Net interest income increased by 22.44% year-on-year, a tangible “real gain,” reflecting the robustness of its main business. In contrast, the decline in agency wealth management income reflects the impact of capital market volatility but does not affect the bank’s fundamental stability.

From a strategic perspective, rather than competing with leading joint-stock banks in wealth management for incremental income without profit, it’s better to solidify the foundation of corporate and retail deposit and loan businesses, focusing on “quality” to improve “efficiency,” balancing volume and price. For a city commercial bank just entering the trillion-yuan club, stabilizing interest margins and solidifying interest income are the most responsible actions for shareholders.

The “solution” for capital replenishment — endogenous and external sources combined

The core Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio fell by 1.35 percentage points to 8.53%, which is a key market concern. From a financial perspective, this is indeed a temporary pressure caused by rapid credit expansion, but it also reveals the common capital constraints faced by city commercial banks and the room for Chongqing Bank to address them. The key is not simply “slowing down,” but improving quality through structural optimization and technological innovation.

The annual report shows that loans to tech companies grew by 60%, green loans by 40%, and manufacturing loans hit a five-year high. These loans directed toward “new productive forces” not only align with national policies but will also further realize benefits from industrialization in the future. Additionally, the bank maintained a dividend payout ratio of 30%, continuing high dividends despite capital pressure, reflecting management’s confidence in profitability and capital returns.

Moreover, Chongqing Bank issued 13 billion yuan of convertible bonds in 2022. On March 24th, Chongqing Expressway Group increased its holdings by converting bonds into 151 million A-shares, demonstrating strong support from key state-owned shareholders for the bank’s future prospects. As the convertible bonds are converted, the bank’s capital replenishment channels further open. If all bonds are converted, static estimates based on the annual report data suggest an increase in the core Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio.

Beyond the trillion mark — safeguarding the original mission of “regional financial mainstay”

If we shift our view from mere financial indicators to the broader regional economic landscape, Chongqing Bank’s 2025 strategic logic becomes remarkably clear.

In 2025, the competitive landscape of banking undergoes profound changes, with state-owned large banks accelerating their penetration. Against this backdrop, Chongqing Bank did not blindly chase a high retail proportion but instead rooted itself firmly in Chongqing, leveraging “geographical + relational” advantages, channeling credit resources precisely into major projects and local characteristic industries within the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.

Whether supporting the “33618” modern manufacturing cluster system or promoting a healthy “technology–industry–finance” cycle, every step Chongqing Bank takes aligns with local economic development. If a regional bank can achieve asset scale leaps, rapid profit growth, and asset quality improvement while serving the local economy, then the so-called “imbalance” between corporate and retail is more like a disconnection from regional realities.

When reviewing this report, one should not be swayed by superficial “imbalance” arguments. Under the grand narrative of financial support for the real economy, Chongqing Bank’s solid corporate lending, optimized liability costs, and prudent asset quality demonstrate its confidence and responsibility as a new member of the “trillion club.” Scale is important, but quality remains the core. After crossing the trillion mark, Chongqing Bank is actively exploring a path of high-quality development that fits its positioning and integrates into national strategies. (Source: Chongqing Bank)